


Sicut Lilium Inter Spinas

by reine_des_corbeaux



Category: 15th Century CE RPF, The Book of Margery Kempe - Margery Kempe
Genre: Blasphemous Porn, Crying, Cunnilingus, F/F, Medieval Christianity, Pastiche, Plot What Plot/Porn Without Plot, Yuletide Treat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:06:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,683
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28305771
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reine_des_corbeaux/pseuds/reine_des_corbeaux
Summary: A missing chapter fromThe Book of Margery Kempe, concerning Margery Kempe's encounter with Julian of Norwich.
Relationships: Margery Kempe/Julian of Norwich
Comments: 33
Kudos: 56
Collections: Yuletide 2020





	Sicut Lilium Inter Spinas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [notearchiver](https://archiveofourown.org/users/notearchiver/gifts).



After this creature had spoken with Dame Julian for many hours, she became quite tired, and asked that she might be allowed to lie down for a little while in the anchoress’ parlour. And Dame Julian was content to let her do so, for she recognized her exceeding holiness and her great exhaustion. While she said that she could not have a bed made up for this creature, she would be glad for her holy company, and enjoined her to stay. And so this creature did stay, and did sleep peacefully Dame Julian’s company, with her in the parlour and the anchoress on the wall’s other side. 

Sometime after the hour of Matins, Dame Julian began to pray, and this creature joined her. And Our Lady came to her in a vision, with an exceedingly sweet air about her and the merry music of Heaven, and she greeted this creature and bid her be nursed at the breast of her Son, through the teachings of Dame Julian. This creature, on hearing this, began to weep very sorely, until she feared that she would wake Dame Julian with her cryings. But Our Lady told her that she should not be afraid, and should instead make herself ready for the Lord. 

Presently, the Lord joined her in the parlour, and Our Lady vanished. This creature commenced to cry again, for she had been most grateful for the comfort of Our Lady, and feared that the Lord might bring with him chastisement, as he had in the past, for she feared his punishment as much as she craved his love. But the Lord was very kind to her, and he appeared to her with merry music and with sweet odors, and this creature was comforted. 

The Lord said: “Daughter, I would have you make yourself holy in union with My daughter Julian, whom I love as much as I love you, and whom I favour as I favour you, and more even than I favour My daughter Bridget. There is much for you to learn from her, and much for her to learn from you, and thus I would have you commingle your spirits and be joined by words spoken in the same air, and not separated by this.” 

This creature was filled with most holy desire at his words, and immediately wished that Dame Julian might open her door to this creature, so that she could speak. But the Lord told her that now was not the time, and she ought to speak holy words with Dame Julian so that she might open up her cell and her teachings to this creature. So she walked to the window and to Dame Julian, who had been wakened by this creature’s cryings. Even so, she was calm, and asked this creature from where her sorrows came. 

“From Jesus Christ our Lord,” said this creature. “He has bidden me to speak with you, and in a vision told how the door ought to be open between us so that we may speak in the sanctity of your cell.” 

Dame Julian frowned, and spoke of the rule by which she abided, and this creature prayed most devoutly to God that He might convince Dame Julian to let her into her cell. And the Lord heard this creature’s prayers, and Dame Julian opened the cell to her, though she sat in the furthest corner and did not rise to greet this creature. But this creature, overcome with the knowledge of our Lord’s blessing, ran into the cell and fell at Dame Julian’s feet, although it was a very small room. There, she commenced with her cryings, overcome by the sanctity of the anchoress’s presence, and by their bodily closeness in the cell. 

The holy anchoress was disturbed by this creature’s weeping, and she asked her about her tears in this moment. 

“You have spoken of your visions,” she said, “but I do not see why you should cry now? Do you see God in this moment?” 

And prompted by angels, or by her own tongue, this creature said, “I see only you, lady, and I see that the Lord is with you, and that he desires me to learn from you.” 

This creature then perceived, in the presence of Dame Julian, a most sweet odour, as that which had accompanied Our Lady at the times when she spoke with her. It once more brought her to tears, but she found that she could control them, and was surprised by this, for she could never stop the tears that our Lord sent her. And still she prostrated herself at Dame Julian’s feet until Dame Julian told her to rise and be well. 

“I cannot rise,” this creature said, “until I have learned what you must tell me. For Christ himself told me to remain at your feet.” 

At this, Dame Julian looked on this creature, and smiled in a most holy way upon her. 

“Then I must bid you to rise in order to learn, for you will learn not from me, but at the breast of Jesus Christ.” 

This creature was driven into confusion by Dame Julian’s words, for she saw no visions of our Lord, nor did she hear any of the merry music of Heaven. But she knew Dame Julian was of exceeding holiness, and so she listened to her words, and as she listened, she perceived too that by the light of her good nature and the blessings bestowed on her by our Lord, Dame Julian was very fair as well. And this creature rejoiced to look on her in such a way, and would have made merry and prostrated herself once again, had not Dame Julian taken her by the hands and drawn her to her feet. 

At that moment, the Lord gave this creature a great desire to give the kiss of peace to Dame Julian, and she did so, upon her lips, which were very dry, and this creature had the thought that they tasted of apples. And this creature grew frightened by her great desires, and thought that she sinned greatly in wanting to join herself to Dame Julian. But Dame Julian pulled her quite close, and spoke holy words to her of her own visions. 

“If God is Love, and if we have both seen His love, perhaps He means for us to share our love between each other. But I do not know what I can teach you, for I am ignorant in the ways of the flesh.” 

But this creature knew that, though it had been much against her own desires, she had great knowledge of the flesh, and when Dame Julian gave her the kiss of peace, she touched her body in the way she was accustomed to touching the body of her husband, and this creature opened Dame Julian’s garment so she might see her consecrated body, who did the same for this creature. 

When she had kissed this creature many times and given her her blessing, Dame Julian drew this creature’s lips to her breast, as though she were a child, and bid her nurse herself upon the fountain of the knowledge of God. And this creature did so, with much sighing, and with a great weeping, and a merry one. For this, Dame Julian stroked this creature’s hair, and told her how she recognized holiness within her. 

“But you must not grow too proud, daughter,” she said, as though she herself were the Lord Jesus Christ and not merely a recipient of His holy showings. “For with pride you will never learn the way to heaven.” 

And this creature said, “I have been proud, Dame Julian, and I have repented, and I will continue to repent of my pride and make myself humble.” 

She made to pull herself from Dame Julian’s arms, and from her breast, which she had kissed like a rosary or like a relic of a holy saint, and to prostrate herself on the floor of the cell, but again, Dame Julian forbade her. And this creature wanted more than anything to kiss Dame Julian’s feet and wash them in tears, and to adore her voice and her hands and her limbs, as she might adore the Virgin and the saints and our Lord Jesus Christ. But Dame Julian would not allow her, until this creature finally pressed a kiss to her body. 

This creature proceeded to kiss the most holy anchoress all over, in every part of her body that she would allow her access to, and when she had kissed her until her lips were as sore as they had been in her most terrible visions, she tongued at the flesh of Dame Julian’s body, and at her cunt, which made her cry out as though she saw many visions of Heaven and angels and saints. And this creature worked upon her, and learned in this way the importance of giving service to those who required it, and she felt that God was pleased by her conduct, for Dame Julian cried out loudly. Her legs twitched as though in a fit, and she spoke in a babble of angels and saints and the goodness of heaven. 

This creature was both pleased and frightened, for she had not thought that she might be able to induce a vision in Dame Julian by the power of her own weak and sinful tongue. And Dame Julian smiled in a great bliss, and drew this creature to her and against her breast, and praised her for her selflessness and service, and promised that she herself would do to this creature as this creature had done for her, but only after they spoke holy words, and prayed in thanksgiving to the Lord, for making this encounter possible. And so they did, naked, and in the little light of the moon, and this creature was most glad, and sent great thanks unto heaven, for in that moment, she loved the world, and of all the creatures in the world, this creature loved Dame Julian most of all 

**Author's Note:**

> While my reading has left me with the impression that Julian of Norwich probably didn't have a door or access to the church in which her anchorhold was located, I've thrown that particular bit of accuracy to the winds here for the easier facilitation of pornography. Likewise, I couldn't resist a little reference to what one of my medieval history professors once referred to as Margery's "God loves you better than Bridget of Sweden" moment, because that makes me very happy indeed. Finally, since this is a pastiche, I should probably mention that I am working off Barry Windeatt's translation of _The Book of Margery Kempe._
> 
> Title is pulled from the Latin Vulgate translation of the Song of Songs. 
> 
> Hope you have a fantastic Yuletide!


End file.
